If digested....??

[jaia]

Hi All

Out of my four newts, I have only two left (Cynops orientalis). Today was my first day away from them.....despite having a lid......one newt is missing....it would seem the roommates cat got to the tank.....

My question....if the cat ate a 2inch newt, would he get sick.....noticeably? I have searched high and low and I am not finding anything at all of the missing newt.

Thanks

 

[hayden]

try a dish of water laid on the ground...When he sees it he will come a runnin

 

[TJ]

Arghhh, I dread hearing about these accidents. But then I repeatedly committed the same mistakes myself -- and worse-- during my early days of newt-keeping so I'm in no position to lecture...

If I were you, I'd make an even more intensive search for it. Consider this as a golden opportunity to clean and tidy up the room. Get on your hands and knees and methodically pick up everything up, cleaning as you go. You probably have less than 24 hours to discover it before it dies and turns into a mummy. If nothing else, you'll at least have accomplished something -- a cleaner room -- when you're done.

For the tank, while you're thinking about how to make a more secure lid, at least for now you should use masking tape (better yet electrical tape) to create a 2-inch rim around the entire top area to prevent your last one from escaping.

I doubt your cat ate it, but I'd carefully monitor the cat just in case and rush it to the vet at the first sign of trouble.

Did you lose the other 2 newts through escapes? You can compensate for that loss by doing everything possible now to safeguard the remaining 2

(Message edited by TJ on July 30, 2004)

 

[kaysie]

I'll fess up here. I wasn't going to say anything out of embarassment, but since in the end everything turned out, I'll spill my story. Wednesday, I thought I put the lid back on the Triturus karelinii tank after doing a waterchange. I failed to check to be sure it was on correctly, and had left it ajar. I came home that night from work, and did my normal "checkups" to make sure all was well before I went to bed and noticed the lid. Lo and Behold, an escapee. I searched my basement high and low for the little bugger, but absolutely no signs of him. I gave up. The next morning, I searched again, no sign. I figured him a lost cause. But a friend then convinced me to look again, and because he was in the cold, damp basement, he might be okay. So I searched every nook and cranny, and behold, I found him! A little dusty, and fat from basement-bugs. To show you how small of a space they can hide in, Here's a pic of where I found him.

For reference sake, the wood is 2x4's and you're seeing the 2 inch side of that. And the gap between the wood and the wall is about 0.3 cm. So narrow I had to get the forceps to nudge him out because my fingers wont fit.

The moral of my story is that there is hope! Get a piece of cardboard (or 10) and make a little "cave" out of a pot or even a piece of paper. Make it damp, put food in it. Place these all around.

(Message edited by kaysie on July 30, 2004)

 

[jaia]

Hello All

Thanks for the replys and advise and sharing your stories....I am ecstatic to say he was found....in his tank....alive and well and wondering why I was ripping my house apart, no doubt.

I feel so stupid, he has this piece of driftwood with a hole in it and he has been in that spot for two days, in and out of the hole, he wasnt there when I got home...short of dismantling the entire tank, I looked around (in the filter too) just never saw him. He was on the stream, under the rock under the hose sitting in the flowing water.....booger. After 8hrs passed, my house is a total waste zone, he finally poked his head out and I totally saw him by accident. I looked there, but like I said he was under the hose, and blended in perfectly....ahhh I am an idiot. lol.

The first two did not excape but died days after coming home from the petstore. One newt, fast earning the name Houdini....is healthy now and normal, except not going into the water really (test were okay, not perfect). The second one, no name so far, is the one missing a leg, it looks the same more or less from 2 weeks ago, the bone piece is still sticking out, he will not eat from my hand or foreps, but is not getting weaker or thinner, so he must be eating. He is also mobil and has been in the water more than the other one.

Here is his pic (sorry its blurry). I thought this one was going to be the first to go, but he is hanging on.

Again thanks all for the help and concern and advise.

 

[peter]

I wouldn't feel stupid, I've spent a lot of time looking for one of my n. viridescens that "disappears" frequently from my tank. I have 5 of them, but frequently I can only count 4. I have no idea where they hide, but even under heavy search, I usually don't find it until the next day, safe as can be in the tank.

 

[joseph]

They can survive out of the tank for 24 hours? I think it depends on humidity. From my 1 escapee, I doubt they can live for longer than 3 hours outside of the enclosure. I'm in CA, which makes it warm and dry, so that could be a factor.

 

[kaysie]

My basement is extremely damp (a lot due to spilled water on my part too) and very cool. Great place for an escape, other than the hiding spots.

 

[joseph]

Oh ,and for anyone who has an escape, I have a suggestion.

Apparently, the salamanders can sense water from several feet away. If your tank is near a bathroom, they may very well try to go towards it.